Sometimes I just cook because I like to, and something totally homemade is food born of love. Like lasagna – yes, it can be made from box noodles and canned sauce, but there’s something tastier about it when the pasta is fresh homemade and the sauce bubbled on the stove top.
I just had a yen for lasagna for dinner. And, truth be told, I had everything but the noodles. I wasn’t going to make a trip to town just for a box of noodles, so homemade pasta was the other choice. Pasta is really just flour and eggs, a little oil maybe. Mix it up, let it rest a while wrapped up (I use beeswax cloth) , then roll it out and form into the desired shape. When I use my Kitchen Aide Pasta set, making pasta is a breeze. My pasta recipe makes a lot, far more than you’ll need to a large tray of lasagna 3-4 layers deep. The remainder can be dried and wrapped tightly for next time, or par boiled and be frozen, or make it into something else (ravioli anyone?). Rollout pieces of dough, I went down to #6 on my roller, so it’s pretty thin, because pasta swells up as it cooks. I cut strips about 2 ” wide, mostly the length of my pan. Shorter strip can fill in anywhere – because no one will notice.
Tomato, or marinara, sauce is something I make frequently. I often have some in the freezer. Not today, so I pull out a large can of San Marzano tomatoes. I had a big box of grape tomatoes and a couple Roma’s on the counter of the verge of spoiling, so I quickly blanched them and ran them thru my tomato strainer to remove skin and seeds, and wow, fresh tomato juice to add in. Add some garlic and onion, and some Italian seasoning mix, and voila, fresh marinara sauce for lasagna (or any other pasta). I also always add some jarred sauce – it may be counter intuitive when making homemade sauce, but it creates a nice texture. Refrigerate or freeze leftover sauce after you prepare the lasagna.
Now that the pasta is resting, and sauce is made, I mix up the ricotta filling – ricotta, a couple eggs, a little grate of fresh nutmeg, more Italian herb mix… and the cheese layer is ready. Put it in the fridge to stay cold.
Lastly the meat. I used half Italian sausage and half lean ground beef today. Brown in a large skillet, with some salt and garlic and onion powder, and put in a dish on toweling to drain off any fat.
Time to start cooking. Bring a large pot of water to boiling and drop in 2-3 strips at a time. Fresh pasta cooks quickly, probably only 1-2minutes. Remove when it is floating. Have a linen or flour sack towel (LOVE THESE -NO LINT!) on a tray and be ready to spread the noodles flat as you remove them. This dries off excess water. It’s a dance to roll, cut and cook each quarter bit of dough without the pasta drying out – which is does readily when it’s thin. Keep extra dough covered with a damp cloth while you work. You’ll need enough strip of pasta to make 3-4 layers, depending on how deep your dish is.
Once enough pasta is cooked and drained, it’s time for the assembly. A thin layer of sauce in the bottom of the pan, then a layer of noodles. I spread the cheese mix next, then the meat on top, and a sprinkling of mozzarella (I did not have milk or time to make home made mozzarella today, though I wish I could have!).
Repeat the layers, omitting any more sauce until you get to the top. Put a good layer of tomato sauce on the top so it can seep down the sides, and a thick layer of shredded mozzarella, or thick slices of fresh mozzarella if you are lucky enough to have it on hand.
Bake until bubbly, with crispy edges, and the cheese starts brown. Add a salad and some cheesy garlic bread, and you have a feast! Invite friends over to share…or plan on putting some away int he freezer for a quick meal one day.
Pasta Dough
fresh homemade pasta dough is easier to make than you think, and cooks quickly
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour (all purpose)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3 large eggs
- 1 tbsp oil oil
Instructions
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In a stand mixer or food processor, mix together the flour and salt.
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Break eggs together into a small bowl and stir to break the yolks. Add the eggs and oil to the flour.
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Process until the dough comes together. Add a few drops of water if it seems too dry to come together. Knead for a couple minutes, then turn out on a lightly floured surface. Hand knead to make sure all four is incorporated.
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Wrap up tightly in plastic or beeswax paper and let rest for at least 30 minutes.
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When open up, it should look all yellow and show no dry spots. Cut into quarters to form pasta. Keep remaining pieces wrapped in a damp towel to prevent drying out as you work.
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Cut into quarters, keeping pieces covered with a damp towel or wrapped up to prevent them from drying as you work with one quarter. Shape as desired.
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To cook, place in simmering water. Fresh pasta cooks quickly – 1-3 minutes depending on the thickness. It floats when done.
Recipe Notes
The dough may be totally mixed by hand without the aid of a mixer or food processor – it just takes longer to totally incorporate the flour. Of course, Italian grandma’s did it this way all their lives.
Tomato (Marinara) Sauce
Homemade marinara sauce is better than any jarred sauce
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3-4 cloves garlic, minced or grated
- 2 28 oz jars San Marzano tomatoes
- 2 tsp Italian herb mix
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground pepper
- 2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese if desired
- any left over jarred sauce
Instructions
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In a large Dutch oven over medium eat, warm the oil. Add the onion and cook 3-5 minutes until softened, then add the garlic and stir briefly.
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Add the tomatoes (break up whole one), diced tomatoes or tomato sauce you are using. Rinse out cans with about 1 cup of water and add to the tomatoes. Add salt and Italian herb mix, and any left over jarred sauce you might have on hand.
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Cook, stirring occasionally, about an hour. Sauce will reduce and thicken.
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Stir in cheese, if using. Taste and adjust salt and pepper.
Recipe Notes
Adding jarred sauce does something to create a nice consistency of homemade sauce. It also uses up something sitting the in fridge that might go to waste!
Homemade Lasagna
Use homemade sauce or use jarred sauce and box noodles if tiem doesn't allow for hours of cooking.
Ingredients
- 1 pound pasta dough or use box pasta sheets
- 1 quart tomato /marinara sauce or jarred sauce
- 1-2 32 oz containers of Ricotta cheese (use 2 for thicker cheese layers)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1/4 tsp grated fresh nutmeg
- 2 tsp Italian herb mix
- 2 lbs hamburger or a mix of hamburger and sausage
- 1 tsp each salt and pepper
- 3 cups grated mozzarella cheese
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350F.
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Brown meat over medium heat, adding salt pepper and Italian mix. Drain on paper toweling on a plate or dish.
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Make the cheese mix – stir together the cheese, eggs, nutmeg, Italian herb mix, salt and pepper until well incorporated.
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Spread a layer of sauce in the bottom of the pan.
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Make a layer of pasta noodles.
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Spread 1/2 to 1/3 of the cheese mix (depending on how many layers you want), followed by a layer of meat , and sprinkled mozzarella cheese.
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Continue another 2-3 layers.
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Place a final layer of pasta on top, and cover with sauce. As the lasagna bakes, sauce will seep down to permeate layers and sides.
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Cover with 1 1/2 cups of shredded mozzarella. Cover with foil.
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Bake 1- 1 1/2 hours until bubbly. Remove foil for the last 20 minutes so cheese melts and browns slightly.
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Let stand 10 minutes (if you can!) before serving.
Handy Items you might want for pasta:
